August 9, 2014 - Share # 7

New garden pests? Actually it's the cast from "Dark Age", the indie movie being filmed at Frog Holler. Intern Nhin got in this scene!(rt. front)

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WHAT'S IN THE BOX:

CURLY KALE

SUMMER SQUASH/ZUCCHINI

LEEKS - NEW!

CELERY - NEW!

POTATOES

BEETS - NEW PATCH!

ARUGULA

CARROTS

GARLIC

TOMATOES

SWEET BASIL

STORAGE SUGGESTIONS: Potatoes, garlic and tomatoes out of the fridge, unless you're going for long term storage. Everything else rinsed, drained and in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

Massaged kale salad (foreground) and Arugula, Potato and Green Bean Salad.

Member Patty S. made the Arugula, Potato and Green Bean Salad that was suggested in the July 26 CSA newsletter. She pronounced it delicious! (Sorry, no green beans for a little while. We are starting a new patch, but never fear, they will return!)

Patty also made a massaged kale salad with orange slices, which is supposed to help deliver kale's benefits, and used the walnut oil from the previous recipe for the dressing. her husband pronounced it delicious! Here's a photo of two beautiful and delicious dishes and we like the touch of a locally-brewed cool frosty to top it all off!

Last week when it was cool we enjoyed Potato and Leek Soup . This is Mollie Katzen's recipe from her cookbook, The Enchanted Broccoli Forest. Anyone who has been interested in good food for a while knows and loves Mollie Katzen; her first book, The Moosewood Cookbook, has introduced thousands to the delicious pleasures of cooking with whole grains and vegetables. The soup was delicious! And it thickened so well when the veggies were pureed, that no milk was added! perhaps our potatoes are especially creamy!

We didn't have it at the time, but the next time we make Potato Leek soup, we will use the soup stock we made this week. We took tops from the leeks and onions, beet stems, thick broccoli stems - any veggie trimmings we had accumulated over weeks of cooking ( we clean them and freeze them until we have enough to make a large pot of stock. But you can make a small pot of stock as well!). After simmering for several hours, the stock has extracted all the veggie's flavor and is rich and aromatic. The stock is then strained and stored or frozen. Try it! You'll be glad to use every smidgen of your share, and your soups will take on a rich and unique flavor!

HOLLER FEST TIME! Preparations are heating up at the farm and we hope you can make it out. CSA members will receive their passes to Holler Fest over the next two weeks - one or two passes depending on your level of membership. However, if you have volunteered, you're in for the whole weekend plus you get a meal from Holla Carte at the Holler Kitchen. Consider it - we still have some spaces to fill!

Neighbor Tom and grandson Sullivan mowing the Main Holler.

You can read all about the music and activities at hollerfest.com.  Lots of stuff for kids to do plus two kid's concerts and a song singing workshop for families. The Free Store returns to offer an exchange for clothes and items looking for another home - and a chance to find new treasures. A Book Exchange operates alongside the Free Store. Nature Walks, Medicinal Plant Walks and Garden Tours are all on tap. Outdoor yoga classes meet Saturday and Sunday morning.Vendors Silvio's Organic Pizza and Pilar's Tamales will return and, along with the Holler Kitchen farm meals and Holla Carte side dishes and treats, you won't go hungry at Holler Fest! And the whole weekend is chock full of accomplished local musicians from many genres. With all this going on at the festival, you really should consider camping for the weekend and immersing yourself in the spirited  community feeling and beautiful natural surroundings. See you at Holler Fest!

Every year Tom finds a centerpiece log for the giant Holler Fest bonfire. Here's the start for 2014!

Last year's bonfire starting to burn down.

There go Tom and Sullivan finishing the Main Holler mowing!

REMEET THE INTERNS: ANGIE MARTIN!

Well, if you do go to Holler Fest, you'll probably encounter Angie in several ways - either by hearing her sing with the Billy King Band on the Main Stage or in the Cabin, or by having a meal at the Holler Kitchen, which will most certainly have been cooked by Angie!

After graduating from Knox College in Illinois, Angie worked on organic farms in Florida and Pennsylvania. But then,  after spending a summer in Chicago (where she grew up), she was ready to get out of the city and back on the land. She serendipitously chose Frog Holler to call, and although we usually don't add to our crew in August, it happened to be the week before Holler Fest and when Angie asked if we needed more help, we said Sure! And we're sure glad we did!

Angie and sister Chrissy in the Holler Kitchen

Angie joined the crew for the fall of 2009, and returned in 2010 and 2011. Not only was she an experienced hand in the fields, turns out that girl could sing! Angie started to singing with Frog Holler farmer Billy King's band and together they have played many gigs around the Ann Arbor area and state. Well, also turns out that girl can cook! Angie, with her sister Chrissy and other helpers, took over the kitchen crew duties for Holler Fest and served many memorable meals from the Holler Kitchen.

Angie moved to Dallas for 2012 and 2013. She was there to help her family, but she also had some jobs as the garden manager at The Garden Cafe and helping at a plant nursery and at her CSA - trying to keep her hands in the dirt even in Dallas! Angie explored some other areas of learning, such as Permaculture and taking a "tiny house" building workshop, but when it was time to leave Dallas, she thought about Frog Holler. Angie had visited us during her time away, and returned in 2012 and 2013 to cook for the week of Holler Fest, but this year she joined us in early July, and has been adding her energy and enthusiasm to the crew ever since!

Billy King, Angie, Scott Thacher, Kenny King at the Manchester Gazebo Concert.

Angie also easily slipped back into her vocalist role with the Billy King Band, performing at several venues already and gearing up for Holler Fest, with the band closing out Saturday night on the Main Stage, and closing out the festival on Sunday evening at the Main Stage. 

Angie singing in Manchester. July 2014.

Treehouse - view from the ground

With Angie's interest in "tiny houses", we offered her
 "the treehouse" to stay in at the farm and she jumped
 right in! If you come to Holler Fest you'll see it perched
 back near the Holler Kitchen - convenient!

Angie is considering taking a Permaculture intensive in the late fall, but for now she is just happy reconnecting with her friends and the farm life in Michigan. Many of you have probably already met or re-met Angie at the market - it's hard to miss her sunny smile and infectious laugh. She seems to carry that joie de vivre wherever she goes, but she has a special sparkle these days now that she is back at her Michigan farm home.

Angie and the moon - Main Stage, Holler Fest 2013.

Have a great week everyone - and thanks for bringing your boxes back!